Li Zai-ming might not have expected that decoupling from China poses the greatest risk.
The recent troubles faced by South Korea's semiconductor industry once again underscore a reality: supply chains cannot be restructured simply by shouting slogans.
South Korean data shows that its import dependency on tungsten oxide reaches as high as 98.7%, with 93% coming from China. The South Korean government has urgently convened a supply chain meeting to assess related risks.
Why such urgency? Because semiconductor production relies heavily on high-purity tungsten compounds, and the key raw materials are inseparable from China.
This illustrates that global supply chains are not merely about which country—China, Japan, or South Korea—can replace another; instead, they are deeply interwoven. Remove any critical link, and the entire chain could be disrupted.
For years, South Korea has repeatedly echoed slogans like "de-risking" and "de-China," but when it comes to crucial raw materials, reality quickly delivers its answer.
Politics can shout slogans, but supply chains won’t play along. For South Korea, the real risk has never been China—it’s the contradiction of simultaneously trying to reduce dependence on China while remaining reliant on Chinese critical resources.
In industrial competition, it’s not about who shouts the loudest, but who holds something indispensable to others.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1869225742731354/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.